


Villainous Nights 1 (Renzei)

by Yoselin



Series: Villainous Nights Prompts [1]
Category: Villainous Nights (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-05-17 14:05:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14833688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yoselin/pseuds/Yoselin
Summary: Originally posted to Tumblr.Name used is Valkyrie.





	Villainous Nights 1 (Renzei)

The cafe I have chosen for lunch is Optimus recommended. I’ve been working as an intern for less than a week at Optimus yet I’ve heard this cafe by name at least nine times. Entering its cozy atmosphere, it isn’t difficult to see why. The little restaurant is outfitted like a sleek and professional cafeteria, yet there’s a warm and polite ambience about it. Its clientele consist of Optimus employees and the occasional hipster.   
I trace a finger down a menu and idly flip through the drink options. There’s no boba in this place, yet all the foods and drinks look good. I have no idea what to get.   
Sighing to myself, I pick at a napkin and flick from page to page absentmindedly. I have ten minutes left in my lunch break yet I can’t decide on what to actually get. I almost tear the menu by the number of times I flip through it before something is slid into my line of sight.   
I have only enough time to catch the tea from sliding off the table before a stranger slips into the seat opposite of me.   
“You look indecisive,” a cool voice greets. The stranger before me nods at the cup in my hand and brandishes an identical one in his, “It’s tea. Not quite as strong as coffee but it soothes the nerves. You look like you could use that.”  
I blink up at him for half a second while my mind catches up, then shake my head and pick the cup up. It’s herbal scent steams up and greets me clearing up some of my headache.   
“Do I know you?” I pry the lid off the cup and peer at the contents. It’s Oolong, I can recognize it from its scent.   
The stranger, a handsome young man win a box tattoo peeking out the edge of his jacket, offers me a smile that puts the sky to shame. He leans back in his chair, completely nonchalant at having just interrupted another stranger’s lunch break, and shrugs.   
“Doubtful, I’d remember a face like yours,” he winks and extends his hand, “Renzei. You?”  
I shake his hand and smile. “Valkyrie.”  
“Like the Norse figures?” He inclines his head.   
“Something like that,” I nod. I trace my fingers across the rim of the cup and nod at him.   
“Thanks for this by the way. How much do I owe you?” I reach for my purse but he waves my hand away.   
“My treat. You looked like you could use it. Is there a particular reason you look you’re going to a funeral?”   
I snort and take a sip of the tea. It burns my tongue and warms me. “It’s my first week at Optimus and I’m trying to learn my way around. I guess I’m still a little nervous.”  
Renzei makes a sound at the back of his throat, something akin to sympathy, and downs his own tea in one go. He takes my employment in stride whereas other strangers have gawked.   
“I noticed,” he taps his chest and I look down at my own. My Optimus name badge glints in the lamp light and I pick at it.   
Right.   
I offer him a half smile and swirl the tea around watching the liquid lap at the edges of the paper cup.   
“Is there a particular reason you decided to join a stranger for lunch today?” I tilt my head a bit to portray the fact that I am just teasing. Although the concept of joining a random stranger is an anxiety-nightmare, I have to admit I enjoy the distraction. Meeting Renzei is much more interesting than staring down at a phone screen waiting for my next shift to start.   
Renzei balances his empty cup on the palm of his hand and gives me a smirk that brings some color to my face.   
“You ever heard of ‘koi no yokan’? The sense upon meeting someone that you will fall in love with them at due time?”   
I almost splutter out my tea but manage to swallow it down at the last moment. My face burns and I wipe at my mouth with a napkin.   
“That’s quite a bold pickup line,” I sound out.   
Renzei is unmoved. He leans back so that the legs of his chair are balanced and offers me another smile that sends a prickle of excitement through me. When he next speaks, he slides a napkin with a phone number scrawled on it and winks.   
“Wasn’t a pickup line.”

From then on, my days become a little dance with Renzei. Ever since our chance encounter, I find myself stumbling into him more and more. Fate has seemingly smiled upon us.   
A week later, as I slide into the last available seat on the train, I am surprised to find Renzei seated next to me. He has his headphones in yet he pulls them out when he notices me.   
“Valkyrie,” He inclines his head in greeting.   
I smile up at him and tap my pencil against my journal. “Nice to see you again, Renzei.”  
A comfortable silence settles between us and I open up my journal. My messy handwriting is scrawled across the pages. I’ve been keeping track of my time in Optimus by writing names and places down.   
I trace down a column of Optimus heads before Renzei nudges my hand playfully.   
“You know, I stopped carrying a diary in middle school.”  
I snort to myself and slap the journal closed. My hands trace the spine. “It’s my work folder. I keep track of the things I hear and learn in Optimus. Meeting dates, people, places, all that.”   
At my words, Renzei sits up a little straighter. He reaches for the journal in my lap and gives me a look. I raise an eyebrow but hand it to him anyway.   
“It’s boring, really,” I apologize.   
Renzei seems not to think so. He flips through the pages and scans them quickly. I doubt he has any idea who I refer to or what I write about.   
“You have nice handwriting,” he murmurs. He closes the journal with a snap and hands it back to me. I get the feeling that he wants to read it a little longer yet is forcing himself to give it back now.   
I slip it back into my bag and lean back in my seat. Renzei changes the topic as he flicks through the songs in his phone. “Listen, the night is young and you look like you could use a break. Do you want to have some fun?”  
I raise an eyebrow and offer him a smile. “Fun? Is this a date?”  
Renzei grins, a smile that promises fun and so much more, and nods. “If you want it to be.”  
I realize then that I do want it to be. 

Renzei’s idea of fun ends up being a club I’ve never heard of. The pounding music and smell of alcohol is more than refreshing after a long day at Optimus. I may love my internship, but nothing beats pulsing strobe lights and sick beats.   
“Do you come here often?” I struggle to raise my voice above the music. Renzei snorts and I realize too late that I may have used a line. “Shut up. You know what I mean.”  
He takes my hand in his and guides me to the bar where a bartender slides him a drink without prompting. “See I’d tell you that but then I’d have to kill you.”  
I make a sound and take the drink from him. It tastes sweet and bitter at the same time and leaves a pleasant warmth as it goes down. “Alright, don’t tell me, Dr. Franklyn. I assume you brought me for more than just the alcohol?”   
Renzei takes my glass and sets it down on the counter. He then extends his hand with a flourish and nods at the dance floor. A lively beat is starting and people are beginning to dance to its rhythm. “Care to find out?”  
I make a face, take his hand, and struggle to contain the giddy laugh rising within me. I’m not the best dancer, can hardly walk some days, but dancing with Renzei is something I have to cross off my bucket list.   
“Like you know how to dance,” I tease. My hands go to his shoulders and his slide down to my waist.   
He moves me in perfect beat to the rhythm and adds his own flourish to the music. It isn’t a dance I recognize, the music is foreign, but he dances to it like he knows it by heart. I’m more than a little impressed.   
By the time the song comes to a close, I find it easier to match his movements. Renzei is the kind of dance partner that can help anyone dance. I press up against him as another song starts up, the rhythm strong and fast.   
“Does that answer your question?” He brings me flush up against him until there’s hardly any room for the Holy Ghost. There’s a light in his eyes that sets something in me ablaze. I feel prickles of excitement all over my skin.   
I move my hands to his neck, trace the outlines of his tattoo, and look at him in the eyes. His own hands begin to wander down my sides and past my hips. I shiver and am helpless to him.   
He sways us to the music all the while touching me. I let my own fingers wander past his jacket and shirt.   
This is crazy, truly. I’ve known Renzei for a week and have only spoken to him a handful of times, yet I find it easy to be this close with him.   
Perhaps it’s the liquor still on my tongue or the feeling that this is too good to pass up, but I find myself leaning forward. He meets me halfway and slips a hand at the back of my neck pressing me forward. The kiss is intense and dizzying. I’ve kissed people before, but this one feels different.   
All too soon, it is over. I lean against Renzei as his hands go to my sides and stroke my sweater. I shiver when they begin to wander further south. My hands drop to the waistband of his jeans and he presses into me further with his own shiver.   
I smirk against his mouth and don’t think before speaking.   
“Would it be too forward of me to invite you to my apartment?”   
A chuckle is my response. Renzei presses his mouth to my throat just above my heartbeat. I feel a sharp sting before he draws away.   
“Depends. Would it be too forward of me to accept?”

Four weeks later and I’m in my apartment with Robin making brownies in the kitchen and Renzei sitting with his head in my lap on the couch. My fingers stroke at the strands of his hair absentmindedly and I bite my lip.   
“Sampson gave me an important assignment this morning. There’s some files I have to work on in my computer. I have to present them before the PR board Friday and I’m really nervous about it.”  
Renzei makes a sound at the back of his throat and sits up a little straighter. “Do you want me to help?” His fingers inch for the computer on the armrest.   
I shake my head and he drops his hand. My finger taps the screen and it shuts down autosaving my work.   
“I don’t think I’m supposed to show anyone else those files. They’re not CIA classified info, but they contain a lot of important dates and stuff. Sorry,” I shrug.   
Renzei snorts and strokes my hand with his fingers. “It’s not like I’d tell anyone.”  
I give him a teasing smirk and tap at his forehead. “Really? How do I know you’re not some worker for Chatsphere using me for Optimus info?”  
Renzei lets out a laugh and a smirk paints his features. I meant it as a teasing remark but he seems to find something very funny in the statement. A joke that I’m not privy to shines in his eyes and he presses a kiss to my neck.   
“I don’t work for Chatsphere, Val. Duke Vale is a pain in the ass to work with.”  
I snort and weakly resist him as he makes a line down my throat and shoulder. When his fingers begin to slip under my sweater, however, Robin has to interrupt.   
Their voice carries out from the kitchen followed by the sound of a plate being set on a table.   
“Hey, Val! Quit hooking up on our couch and help me with dinner!”   
A blush paints my features and I move away from Renzei with regret. I will kill my roommate someday, I swear it. I stand from my seat and move to pick up my laptop but Renzei stops me.   
“Can I use it for a bit? There’s a game I want to play.” He blinks innocently up at me.   
I shrug. “Fine but if I find porn in my search history, you’re banned from my WiFi.”  
Renzei smirks, makes a comment about not needing it when he has me around, and I smack his shoulder before heading into the kitchen.   
The last thing I see is him plugging in a USB from his pocket into the laptop. 

Hours after he has left, I find the Optimus files open on my computer.   
Perhaps I left them open accidentally. 

A month into our relationship, I find myself back in the club with Renzei. I swirl my straw around my drink and shake my head.   
“There’s a major meeting tomorrow night at Optimus. Sampson and some other heads are going to be there. I made the documents they’ll use but I won’t attend it. Do you want to do something after I get off work?” I bite into the lemon slice.   
Renzei swirls his drink around and gives me an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I have something to do tomorrow night. Rain check?”   
I nod and accept. He scratches at his chin. “What meeting is there anyway? Optimus doesn’t usually hang out after hours, right?”   
I shrug. “I’m just an intern, so I’m not really in on their plans. Something about a new project in development to help send people with powers to countries in need. I made the documents but there was a lot of information I was missing.” I tap my chin. “I’m not boring you with all of my work talk am I?”   
Renzei shakes his head almost a little too quickly.   
“Not at all. I like hearing about Optimus.”  
I open my mouth to say something else when a particularly strong draft of wind moves my hair in front of my face. When I move my hand to brush the black and red strand away, my elbow knocks into my cup and sends it flying across Renzei’s front. His white shirt turns red with the liquor.   
“Shit, I’m so sorry.” I move to wipe at his chest with a napkin.   
Renzei laughs.   
“If you wanted to feel me up you could have just asked. It’s fine, really,” he gently bats my hand away and nods at my jacket, “mind if i borrow that though?”  
I grab my jacket, thankful that I brought a black unisex one large enough for him, and hand it over. My Optimus ID almost falls out of the pocket as he slips it on. He catches it in time and slips it back inside.   
“Want to dance?” He nods at the dance floor coming alive in reds and blues.   
“Yeah,” I nod. I stand up and take his hand. 

By the time I make it back to my apartment after saying goodbye to Renzei for the night, I shove my hand in my jacket pocket looking for my keys.   
I find them after a bit, but, oddly enough, my Optimus ID is gone. I must have dropped it in the club. 

Two days later and I’m at Optimus in Sampson’s office. It’s a nice and sleek room with a large window overlooking the San Francisco skyline. I slip into the leather seat before Sampson and tap my fingers against my leg.   
Sampson flicks past some documents I made and nods at me with a megawatt smile.   
“Nice work, Valkyrie, keep it up and there may be a job offer in your future!”  
I preen at the praise and stand up from my seat. He hands me the folder back and I move to excuse myself. Before I can make it two steps, however, his voice stops me.   
“Valkyrie, did you stay late last night? Maybe working late or something?” Sampson asks.   
I frown.   
“No, I went home with everyone else. Why?” I move my head to the side.   
Sampson scratches his nose and I catch the sight of a nasty bandage under his suit. It looks like the wound is painful if the dry blood is any indication of it. I give him a quizzical stare but he shakes his head.   
“No reason. We had a bit of a problem with the machines last night. Your name badge was used to unlock some doors, but I guess that was just another machine malfunction. I’ve been telling my boss we need to amp up our tech here. Don’t worry about it, yeah?”   
I bite my lip and debate on whether or not to tell him I couldn’t find my name badge this morning.   
“Alright. I’ll see you at our next meeting, sir.”

Renzei swings his arm around my shoulder as I leave Optimus. He takes my bag from me without prompting and slips it on.   
“Most guys are allergic to carrying bags,” I tease.   
Renzei smirks. “I like to accessorize. So, how about we get some lunch together?”  
I shrug and follow him to the same cafe we met at. It’s the end of the Optimus workday so the place is crowded with employees. We find a table near some other Optimus guys and Renzei puts my purse on his chair.   
“How’d it go at work today?” He leans towards me and takes my hand over the table.   
“Fine. I couldn’t find my ID though and the machine glitched our last night. Apparently I tried to access some doors at Optimus,” I pick up a menu.   
Renzei makes a sound at the back of his throat and glances past my shoulder. He seems to be interested in two Optimus employees whispering to themselves about amping up security.   
“Friends of yours?” I ask.   
Renzei jolts out of it and shakes his head. He skims through the menu and orders himself a sandwich. “Nah, I just thought I recognized one of them. So, your ID is missing?”  
I busy myself folding my napkin. “I looked everywhere for it but I can’t find it. I swear I had it in my jacket pocket. You didn’t see it did you?”   
He shakes his head. “No.”  
I sigh and let the conversation drop. My fingers brush across his knuckles and I press my knee into his.   
“So, how’d your day go?”

When our date is over, I bring Renzei back to my apartment. He greets Robin who is busy munching their way through a box of cereal and heads straight to my room. I watch him go and set my bag down on the coffee table.  
Robin extends their leg to stretch and kicks it accidentally. It spills its contents onto the floor.   
“Robin!” I smack their leg with annoyance and gather my fallen belongings.   
When my hand brushes past my name badge, I freeze. My Optimus ID was in my purse the whole time?  
I set the purse away from Robin and dangle my ID on my finger. “That’s weird. I thought I lost it earlier.”  
Robin shrugs and turns back to the show they were watching. “At least you found it, right?”  
I nod and click on the lamp to gather the rest of my stuff. After a few minutes, I pause and glance up at Robin.   
“Well I found my ID but I’m missing my work journal. I swear I put it in my purse after work,” I frown.   
Robin makes a joke about me losing my head if it weren’t attached and I offer them an obscene gesture with my finger. My mind is still buzzing with the worry about my work folder being gone.   
Either I left it at work or someone took it out of my purse. It has to be the former as my purse never leaves my person. The only other person that can hold it is Renzei and he has no reason to touch my Optimus work.   
I shake my head to clear it and wish Robin a good night. 

Two months into our relationship and I find myself sitting at a diner with Renzei. He’s regaling me with talk about his day yet his phone keeps buzzing with notifications. After ten minutes, I tap his cell.   
“Who keeps calling you?” I take a sip from my drink.   
Renzei makes a face and picks up his phone. He skims through his messages and sighs. “It’s a group chat I’m in with a few friends. It’s nothing, really, mainly memes. Ignore it.”  
He launches back into his story yet his phone keeps buzzing. At some point, he gets a phone call and I laugh.   
“Take it, Renzei, it sounds like it’s serious.”   
Renzei mutters something under his breath about annoying people and moves away from my table to speak. I wait for him for a few minutes until my drink runs out.   
When he still hasn’t returned, I sigh and pick up my cup. I move to the soda machine and refill my drink. Renzei, standing feet away, paces back and forth.   
I really try not to listen in on his conversation, yet it is difficult to ignore his voice. He snaps at the phone and tenses his shoulders. Whoever is calling, there’s no love lost there.   
I move to go back to my chair when his voice carries to me. It’s broken yet I can make up a few bits and pieces.   
“...stop doing this...can’t keep lying...done with this...quit this mission...really like her...”  
I frown with confusion but move away. Spying is a nasty habit I won’t pick up. I settle myself back into my chair as Renzei arrives. He slips his phone back into his pocket and scratches at his neck.   
“Anything happen?” I wonder.   
He makes a face then smiles. “Nah, I just had an argument with an old friend. Want some dessert?” 

 

At the five month mark of our relationship, the final piece comes into place in the puzzle. I am running late at Optimus and have stayed to finish up a deadline. As I type, I hear the crashing of glass and a pained grunt.   
I stop in place, save my file, and stand.   
It is almost midnight and everyone should be gone by now. Security guards are the only ones allowed on the premise besides me, yet I can hear the chatter of voices from deep within the building.   
I debate mentally on whether to check out the scene, that usually gets people killed in the movies, yet the tiny shred of bravery I have wins out. I move towards the sound of the noise and have only enough time to gasp before a guard comes flying at me.   
His unconscious body collides against the wall as a strong wind picks up and whips my hair back. I raise my arm to block the gust and crouch into a corner. My heart is pounding in my chest and my fingers are inching for my phone.   
Before me, I can see a figure shrouded in black. He stands among a carnage of fallen security guards and presses a finger to his ear locked in a conversation on an earpiece. His back is to me so I can’t make out his face, yet there’s something familiar about his stance.   
I try to inch back to prevent being seen when the figure picks up something off the ground and flips it through.   
Even with the low lighting, I can recognize my work journal in his hand.   
My breath catches in my throat and I yank my phone out of my pocket. I think to call the police or Sampson or someone at Optimus yet my fingers dial a number automatically. Renzei’s contact photo appears on the screen before the call goes through.   
I wait with hushed breath as it dials-  
And then choke it out when the ringing sounds from the stranger.   
The stranger freezes in place, cusses a string of swears under his breath, and swings around. When our eyes meet, it is my turn to freeze.   
It’s Renzei. 

“I lied to you about a lot of things,” Renzei murmurs. He presses his fingers to the bridge of his nose and rubs at the spot where his mask left an indent.   
I dig my fingers into my palms and shiver in place.   
“You lied to me, stole from me, and used me!” I snap it at him and scratch at my arms. Suddenly, everywhere Renzei touched feels like it burns.   
A silence lapses between us and I quiver more from anger than fear. There are a million things I want to scream at him, thousands of ways I want to hurt him physically, yet my body remains rooted to the spot.   
After I had recognized Renzei, he had ripped out his earpiece and chased me out the building. A screaming match had ensued in the parking lot and he had all but dragged me to the train.   
The midnight shuttle was almost empty and we were able to find a cab with no people. The ride to my apartment had never felt longer.   
I bite my lip hard and stroke my fingers across my work journal. Renzei had taken it months ago but I had ripped it out of his grasp once we had entered the train car.   
I feel like an idiot. The signs have always been there, every missing item could be traced back to Renzei, but I had refused to believe. How could I have ever suspected that my boyfriend of five months had used me as a ploy to get to Optimus?  
I clutch the journal protectively and Renzei stares at his hands.   
“Can I at least explain?” His voice is quiet.   
“Not interested,” I snap.   
I move away from him and to the other side of the train car. Despite how angry I am, I refuse to let myself blowup at him. It is midnight, I am tired from a long day of work, and I won’t let him have the satisfaction of knowing how much my heart is breaking.   
“Val, please-“  
“Don’t call me Val. Only my friends get to call me that,” I dig my nails into my palms, “just shut up.”  
Silence falls again and I want to scream. A raging headache is beginning near my temples and I want to go home and cry. By sheer strength and spite, I have not broken down yet before Renzei. I have already given him Optimus and my heart but I’ll be damned if I let him have my strength too.   
I glare at the wall and hold my journal until my hands shake. Finally, the train comes to a halt and the doors slide open.   
I exit into my stop and almost evade Renzei. Almost. His hand catches my arm gently and he tugs me towards him.   
“Just please hear me out, Valkyrie. Just give me a chance to explain,” he meets my gaze. His eyes look sincere yet I’ve just found out how well he puts on a facade.   
I yank my arm out of his grasp and he lets go without struggle.   
“Don’t come near me again,” I hiss.   
I spin away and march off with my head held high. I make it a few steps before he speaks again.   
“It wasn’t a lie, Val, I really do like you. I lied about a lot but never that.”  
His words almost cause me to stop, yet I press on. I’m sick of listening to snakes. I shake my head and power on without even dignifying him with a response. 

Robin gives me a plate of ice cream and offers to be a shoulder to cry on. They don’t know the particulars as to why Renzei and I are over, but they know enough to know I really need a friend. I cry for a good long while before the sun begins to peek out over the clouds.   
My fingers fly across my phone as I erase every picture and message between us. The thought of Renzei makes me sick. I want nothing more than to purge him from my life, yet fate has other plans.   
As I delete the hundredth photo, my phone lights up with a phone call. The name “Do Not Answer” flashes across my screen. My hand shakes as I debate on whether to hang up or not.   
Robin quietly excuses themselves, deciding to give me privacy for either option, and I grit my teeth.   
Finally, I click answer and press the phone to my ear.   
“What do you want?” My voice sounds out clipped and pained. I don’t bother hiding how much heartache I am in.   
On the other side of the line, I almost hear Renzei’s own heartbreak.   
“I know you don’t want to hear it but I’m sor-“  
“I don’t want to hear it. If that’s all you have to say, I’m hanging up.”   
I move my finger to end the call but he continues to talk.   
“I just wanted to let you know that I handled things. The security cameras caught you in the fight but I managed to erase the footage. Optimus won’t know you had anything to do with what happened tonight. Your job will be fine.”  
I clench my jaw and count to ten. My hand shakes.   
“I’m hanging up now-“  
“Just please give me a minute, Val.”  
Renzei’s voice sounds tired, pained, and I squeeze my eyes shut. I should hang up, should block his number and erase him from my life, yet I stay on the line. I must be a masochist.   
“I used you for Optimus information but I never lied to you about anything else. I really do care about you, Val, that part wasn’t a lie. Our relationship wasn’t based off of deception-“  
I cut him off then although my heart is pounding in my ears.   
“When we met, you bought me a cup of tea. Was that pure fate or did you plan to chat up an Optimus employee?”   
Silence on the line. I count to fifteen before he answers the question.   
“...I saw your name badge.”  
A snort leaves my lips followed by a bitter laugh that sends a shiver down my own spine. Frustration and heartache grate on me and I run my fingers through my hair.   
“Then it was based on a lie, now wasn’t it? I’m going to hang up.”   
I move to hang up once more but his voice continues.   
“Wait. Just, just let me know if you ever need anything, Val. Optimus isn’t what you think it is and I don’t want you to get hurt. If you ever want me to tell you the truth, the full truth, just come talk to me. Don’t hesitate to tell me when something is wrong. Please.”  
I roll my eyes at his words then remember he can’t see. My jaw clenches impossibly tight. “You sound like a raving conspiracy theorist. Just shut up.”  
Silence again. I feel tired and my ice cream has melted into a puddle on the plate. I swirl the spoon around then close my eyes.   
“There is one favor you can do for me, Renzei,” I relent.   
I hear him catch his breath. “Anything.”  
Shaking, I get ready to end the call. My voice comes out cold and pained when I deliver my request.   
“I just want one more thing from you. Just- **Don’t ever call this number again **.”****


End file.
